The Gilbert and Sullivan Society’s Patience – Aesthetic, Witty and Endearing.

Alisha Reeve

The clocks may have fallen back, the days may be getting colder, but that won’t dampen my spirits, for the St Andrews Gilbert and Sullivan Society returned to the Byre Theatre last week for their production Patience. Their three-night run came around a little earlier than expected (usually their productions take place a little later on in the semester). However, though they had a limited time to rehearse, the society nevertheless gave a satisfactory performance full of tongue-in-cheek crossdressing, hilariously mediocre poetry, and a kiss (I’ll leave it for you to decide which) that could set any fair maiden’s cheek aflame.

Credit: St Andrews Gilbert and Sullivan Society. 

Each Gilbert and Sullivan show I have seen each have their own merits. With Patience, this was the costumes, curtesy of Costumier Mac MacOlino, which I thought had vastly improved since seeing Iolanthe last year. The ladies were dressed in their best frocks, as were the esteemed officers during Act 2 as they tried to make themselves as aesthetically chic as the lady suitors they wished to marry. Their gender-bending endeavours produced the desired results: laughs from the audience and betrothals from the fair maidens and ladies on stage.

Another aspect of the production which stood out for me was the gorgeous lighting displays, brought to us by Erin Reynolds. It was particularly satisfying to watch Reginald Bunthorne (played by Ben Stockil) sing ‘Am I alone and unobserved?’ as bisexual-coloured lighting flashed across the stage, an excellent act of foreshadowing for him and the rival poet Archibald Grosvenor (played by Sam Morrison).

As I mentioned beforehand, the society had little time to rehearse their production, and this was evident throughout the performance. A missed cue here, a forgotten lyric there. But these small slip-ups were met with affectionate chuckles from the audience, the majority of which likely being made up of devoted fans who have come to support their friends either on or off stage (for me it was the latter). We know it’s a student production. At the end of the day, we showed up to Patience to be entertained, and the Gilbert and Sullivan Society did precisely that.